Crossing Lines (Cops and Docs #2) (24 page)

“Hey, no surgery?” Kelli asked, as she kissed the top of Nora’s head.

“Pushed to later today.” Nora nodded and smiled slightly at Travis, Sean, and Carina. She felt like they deserved more, but given the circumstances, Nora didn’t want to overstep any new boundaries.

“Okay. Any questions?” The neurologist asked.

“Nope. I think we’re good,” Travis said.

“All right, good day everyone.” The doctor backed out of the room.

Travis glanced in Nora’s direction. “No offense Dr. Whitmore—”

“Call me Nora, please.”

“Okay. No offense, Nora. This hospital has done wonders. Maybe if everybody looked like you, I wouldn’t be in such a hurry to get the hell out of here,” Travis said.

“Thank you? I think?” Nora smiled.

Everyone laughed again, filling the room with life and warmth.

Sean leaned toward her. “I think he’s saying you’re hot, but doesn’t want Kelli to tear him a new one.”

Nora didn’t bother to hide her blush. Kelli wrapped an arm around her.

“Dammit, see what you did, Sean?” Kelli said teasingly. Her eyes twinkled with amusement.

Nora sighed as the sound of her pager filled the air. She glanced at it.

“You have to go already?” Kelli asked.

“I’m sorry, yes.”

Kelli nodded in understanding. “I’ll try to come find you before I leave.” Kelli’s gaze fell to Nora’s lips. Without hesitation, she gave Nora a brief kiss, and Nora returned it.

Someone whistled.

Kelli smiled before pulling away. “Okay?”

“Okay,” Nora said. Reluctantly, she stepped back. “It was nice seeing everyone.”

“You too, Nora,” Travis and Sean said simultaneously.

Carina McCabe waved.

Nora headed back toward the elevators. It was nearly impossible to wipe the smile from her face. She had expected some awkwardness with Kelli’s family, given their time apart. Sean had been himself, and at least Carina acknowledged her.

* * *

Kelli twirled the pen in her hand and leaned back in her chair. Williams walked up to her desk, grinning.

“Hey, how’d it go with Travis? I wanted to be there but, you know…court.”

“He’ll be a free man next Friday.”

“That’s good news. You want to hear some more?”

Kelli put the pen on her desk. “Fuck yes.”

“Our girl couldn’t make bail. I have it on good authority that most of her phone calls were screaming matches with family. She’s been in lockup the past few days. Apparently, that was enough to break pretty Penny.”

“You’re kidding?”

“No bullshit. She decided to plead guilty to second degree murder. She was a fucking mess, Kel. I guess that lawyer of hers told her there was too much evidence. You think Nora will want to say something at her sentencing?”

“I don’t know, but I’ll ask.” Kelli chuckled and typed out a text. If Nora was still in emergency surgery, she’d get back to her eventually. “The ladies out at Gig Harbor are gonna love her.” Fuck yeah, it was over…completely. She and Nora needed to celebrate.

“Yeah, no kidding. I’ll catch up with you in a few. Caught a case last night we need to do some poking around on.”

“I’ll be here.”

Barely five minutes had passed before her desk phone rang.

Kelli picked it up. “McCabe.”

“Hey, McCabe. I got news.”

“Who is this?” Kelli asked. The man’s voice sounded familiar.

“Pollock from the DEU. I know we don’t talk much, but damn, McCabe.”

Kelli’s stomach dropped to her feet. She swallowed and closed her eyes. “Uh sorry. What’s going on?”

“Look, we got your brother, a bunch of other mid-level guys, and Andrew Cole, the man himself, early this morning.”

“Is he…is he okay?”

“Honestly, he looks like shit, but I’ll let you be the judge of that. Maybe you can talk some sense into him. We’re offering deals to the ones willing to turn on Cole, but apparently his mouth is stapled shut. He’s looking at some serious time.”

For a few seconds, she was relieved before Pollock’s words sank in. “Dammit…I’m coming.” Kelli slammed the phone down. A few detectives turned to look at her. She glanced toward Williams’s desk, but he wasn’t there. Anger got the better of her, but it was wound up pretty tight with fear. Kelli tried to breathe through it. With trembling hands, she picked up the phone to call Sean.

After he learned the news, he went quiet. “You there? Did you hear me?” Kelli asked.

“Yeah, I’m here. I can’t believe this. What is he thinking?”

“I don’t know, but we need to come together and figure it out,” Kelli said.

“I’m on my way.”

Kelli tried to call Nora. She wasn’t going to get an answer, but she just needed to hear her voice, even if it was only her outgoing message. That would have to do for now.

The shoes that Kelli thought were staying on were definitely dropping…right on her head… and they weighed a fucking ton.

* * *

For the first ten minutes, Kelli sat and stared at Antony. Sean stood in the corner doing the exact same thing. Kelli could only speculate about him, but she was in fucking shock.

Antony McCabe was a ghost of himself.

He was pale, extremely slim, gray teeth, and his cheeks were sunken and peppered with pockmarks. The worst part, by far, were his empty-as-fuck eyes that were normally bright and joking. Obviously, he’d continued using and had probably moved on from meth to something a little more devastating.

Antony scratched at the whiskers on his chin. “Say whatever you have to say and get outta my face.”

Kelli bit her tongue hard to keep her emotions at bay. She was so angry and sad, and felt as if she might collapse under the weight of her feelings. “We… I don’t hate you. No matter what you think or how you feel about me.”

Antony snorted. “I’m the family fuck up. The way you think of me…the way you look at me…it’s just as good as hate.”

Kelli knew she had to pick her words carefully. “Things weren’t always like this. When Dad died, you got lost… We all did. We’re better than this, Antony.”

“Yeah, we are,” Sean said in agreement. “Things can get back to where they were. Hell, they can be better—”

“Don’t lie. No they can’t! I’m tired of being somebody I’m not. With Cole, I got respect. My guys look at me like I’m the shit. I ain’t turning on him, so fuck that.”

Kelli looked away. She had to. The guilt was overwhelming, even though she knew she had done her best to help him…to fix this.

“They are not your fucking family,” Sean yelled.

“They treat me better than you do!”

“Dad wouldn’t want this for you,” Sean said.

“He’s dead. Don’t matter.”

Kelli slammed her hand on the table, hard enough to make it rattle loudly. She jumped up and knocked over her chair in the process. “Be angry with us… Hate us, but don’t do this to yourself. Don’t do it to Mom!”

Tony looked back and, for a minute, Kelli thought she was getting through. Then, that empty expression returned.

“She’ll get over it. She has you two.”

Pain rippled through Kelli. It stole her breath and made it impossible to think beyond this moment. What was he doing? What the fuck was he doing? He was loved. He was looked after. He was forgiven time and time again, and she couldn’t count the number of times she’d reached out to him.

“You got a re…record.” Sean’s voice broke. “Listen to reason. You can get up to fifteen years.”

Antony shrugged. “Cole’ll make sure I’m taken care of.”

Kelli’s mouth fell open. The moment seared itself into her brain. It felt like another death in the family. “Antony, please.” She wasn’t above begging. This was her brother. He was a part of her, and she was losing him.

Antony broke her gaze. “Mom, ain’t allowed here. Tell her…I don’t know…just tell her something.”

Sean stepped closer. Close enough to touch. “Antony, man—”

He moved away, nearly jumping out of his chair. “Get out. I’ve had enough.”

Kelli stood frozen to the spot. There was nothing she could do, and knowing that was a whole different kind of agony.

Antony got up then and banged on the door. When the officer opened it, he said, “I’m done.”

Kelli was still, but on the inside, she crumbled.

Seconds ticked by.

“Goddammit.” Sean sounded defeated.

Kelli turned toward him. Sean looked confused, hurt, and exhausted. He reached out his hand. Kelli took it and squeezed.

He didn’t wipe his tears away as they started to fall. “What are we gonna tell, Mom?”

Kelli’s eyes burned. She blinked back her own tears. “I don’t know, but we can’t go to her like this. We need to—”

“Get our own shit together first. I know.”

The door to the interrogation room opened. Williams entered. His forehead was wrinkled, and gray brows were pulled downward. He looked at them both quietly. “I’m here for you, if you need me.”

His words tore open the hole that was already forming in Kelli’s chest. As she started to cry, her cell phone rang. Blearily, she glanced at it. “It’s Nora.” Something fluttered to life inside her.

Sean wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand. “I’ll see you downstairs. One of us is gonna have to take Mom home, I imagine. She won’t be in any state to drive.”

“We both could.”

“Yeah.” Sean walked out after Williams.

Kelli hit the talk button. “Hey.”

“Yes, I would love to be there for her hearing. I haven’t had the chance to listen to your voicemail. I decided to call instead.”

“Nora.” Kelli’s voice was weak, scattered even to her own ears.

“What’s wrong?” Nora sounded alarmed.

Kelli tried to clear her throat. About ten different emotions were choking the shit out of her. “We, uh, found Antony.”

“Is he okay?”

Nora’s concern warmed her from the inside out. “He is, but he’s… I don’t even know where to start, and I can’t do this over the phone. If I can, I’ll come by. It’ll be late.”

“Okay. Is there anything I can do?”

“Just…be there.”

“I will be.”

* * *

It was past midnight when Kelli trudged toward Nora’s front door, but the outside light was on, inviting her in. Kelli was well on the other side of weary. The night had been excruciating, and she still couldn’t wrap her head around the shit that had happened with Antony.

Kelli reached for the doorknob, and it turned easily. She locked the door behind her. The living room was dim. The lamp by the couch gave her just enough light to navigate the area, as she made her way to the master bedroom.

Nora lay still. She’d left the side of the bed closest to the bedroom door vacant, and the covers were turned down. There was something welcoming about that, and Kelli let the warmth fill her. She wrestled out of her clothes and dropped them on the floor. Naked, Kelli carefully slid into bed beside Nora. She wrapped her arms around her and buried her face in Nora’s hair. She needed this. Something real…something familiar.

Nora whimpered and wiggled closer. “Kelli?”

Kelli’s heart went into overdrive, and it felt so fucking good. Still, she didn’t want to talk. They had tomorrow for that. She wanted the warmth. She wanted the peace. She wanted the woman. “Shhh, go to sleep.”

“You’ll be… here?” Nora’s voice was thick with sleep.

“Yeah, I will.”

CHAPTER 16

In bare feet, Nora padded quietly into the living area. As she neared the kitchen, she stopped to observe. Kelli had her back to Nora. Her shoulders were slumped beneath the white tank top, and she stared at the kitchen counter. The strained line of Kelli’s muscles telegraphed her emotional state, worried and defeated. Nora hesitated. They had been here before, and she was only human. However, with determination, she pushed her unease aside. They were different people now. She stepped forward. Nora couldn’t fix the situation with Antony, but she could continue to be here. As if it were an ingrained habit, years in the making, she slid her arms around Kelli’s torso. The Richard Sherman jersey Nora wore rode up and over her thighs, and the cool air of the kitchen nipped at her skin. The warmth of Kelli’s body dispelled the momentary discomfort.

Kelli stiffened in Nora’s arms. It was a sure sign of distress, because Kelli was usually the more demonstrative one.

“Hey.” Kelli’s tone was flat. She tried to move away, but Nora refused to let her. She rested her chin on Kelli’s shoulder and tightened the embrace. Kelli continued to stare into nothingness.

Instead of responding verbally, Nora pressed her lips against the exposed skin on Kelli’s shoulder. Finally, Kelli turned slightly. Her expression was haunted. Nora held her even tighter. Slowly, Kelli relaxed. The tension left her body. Nora brushed her mouth against Kelli’s shoulder once more, in relief and in gratitude that Kelli let her in.

They lingered in the moment, standing quietly together. Nora enjoyed the still, almost calm moments between them. When the words came, they were always more poignant and fostered deeper understanding between them, and Nora wanted nothing more than to feel closer to Kelli. Even though her eyes remained stormy, Kelli smiled.

“I’m not exactly the best company right now. What did I do to deserve that?” Kelli asked.

Nora shrugged. “I’m not sure. I just—”

Kelli turned in her arms completely. “We’re getting good at this again, even better than before.”

Nora looped her arms around Kelli’s neck and shivered when Kelli’s hand teased the back of her thighs. “Good at what?” She asked, already distracted.

“Everything…reading each other, and…” Kelli bent forward and captured Nora’s lips in a brief kiss. “This.”

A sound of agreement rumbled from Nora’s throat. “Even when you’re brooding, you’re easy.”

Kelli’s eyes widened, and she chuckled. The past couple of days held little laughter, which was understandable given the situation.

After realizing that her words had been misconstrued, Nora’s face flushed. “I meant to say that… I thought things between us would be difficult. It turned out to be the easiest thing I’ve ever done.”

Kelli’s smile widened. “I have to agree. I think we both needed things to be simple. But—”

Nora pressed her lips against Kelli’s chin then gazed at her. In an instant, Kelli’s expression changed, yet again.